Cigarette vending machine



Nov. zo, 1934. w` H. BLOCK y 1,981,135

CIGARETTE VENDING MACHINE Filed Nov. 4, 1932 f" f" 1%/ @a J d www ATTORNEYS.

Patented Nov. 20, 1934 UNITED STATES .l1-.filialir orf-Fieri:

7 Claims.

yMy invention relates to cigarette 'vending maohines, .and lmore particularly to 'the I-Ineans yand method for procuring .the delivery :of the cigarettes, and my main object is 'Ito' 'provide a vmachine by means of which the cigarettes :may Vbe delivered single iorder without lclogging or jamming inthetmachine. y

Aurther objectief .therinventionlis to provide means for the .support of the :stock vof cigarettes kept the machine Ito relieve :the cigarette to'rbe delivered from the rweight ther-eof.

A still vfurther object of the invention ris to provide Ia ledge which permits the .free approach of lthe cigarettes to the vdelivery zone.

Another object -oi the inyentionli's 'to :construct the machine with means to check lthe fall :of 'the stock `of cigarettes `kept in the machine rin the direction of those cigarettes whichwhan'ge iposi- 'tions 'in the :delivery zone,A 1in -order that such change may Abe un-hindered.

An Jadditional -obj ect :of the invention fis ito Ycon struct `uthenovel machine with :few andsimple parts which l.are of 'a sturdy-nature, durable-and inexpensive .to manufacture.

With the above objects in `viewandlanyothers that 'may suggest themselves from thefspecification -and claims to follow., :a lbetter understanding of lthe invention lmay be had by .reference to the accompanying drawing, in which l Fig. 1 isa plan view of the novel machine; and

.2 vis 1a vertical 'section on the line 2-'2 .of Fi .'-1.

vhiieamachi-nes for vending cigarettes and 1articles lof a like character :have been :produced or under development for some time, I have fbeen .unable to Vnd a :machine particularly suited .for -the vending of cigarettes. This article is fiof .a delicate nature,1and maybe :deformed for crushed by light pressure, making -it diicult to be red or rolled 'f'or delivery, and also voccasion'ing 'the dissipation -or 'spilling ci the tobacco contents. For machine vending purposes, the stock of 'cigarettes is carried in a carton, the Abottom of which is opened when the carton is set upon "the vending machine.' Thus, the `stock of cigarettes 'forms a load when the lowermost .cigarettes are considered, and the difficulty has been to cause the movement and ysingle delivery of the Alowermost cigarettes Without damaging effects .by .the load from above or the [feeding device. In ythe novel machine, I have endeavored -to overcome this diliculty by so designing the supporting and .feeding .means for the cigarettes that the -on'es 'in the zone of action will -beiree of compressing,

defcrmingridam'aging, jamming or clogging tendencies.

Incariryingout ithe above objects, specic reference to the drawing indicates that -themachine is 'built upon afpyramidal ibase 10, which-may `be of cast metal and :has-ia marginal shoulder 10a near the 'top to receive asuper structure 11 which contains thevsupporting and delivery mechanism for the Lcigar'ettes. The structure 11 is inthe nature of :a :cap 1in its lower portion which closely -its the It'o'p fof l:the base 10. rThe formof the maohineis preferably square, andthe cap 1l vreceives a :ring i12-which forms the seat for a fglass container y13 .vinto `iwi-nich the cigarette stock carton y14: isfadapted'to be fitted with the open end down.

The ltop-oi the base 10 has a pair of laterally spaced @ribs 10b, the forward ends Aof these terminating 'upon a #chute 10c into which the cigarettedeliweredfallsftoa point offeasy accessby the patron. Thezcap 11 ris formed with side walls 11a, with-.a frontal wall ilo, which preferably recedes in-anlinward direction as indicated at 11o to form fa lower :section 11d, and a ceiling section 11e fior 'thepap 311 Between the /ceiing section 11e and Athe ribs \10b is disposed a slide l5, which is preferably of light metal, such as aluminum. The slide has ra vertical opening 15a in its forward portion and a shortupstanding Wall 15b `behind 'the said opening. The portion in `viront of the opening has a depending lug 155e through which aV-shapcd leaf .spring 16 vis passed whereby to be directed With its farms Iforwardly against the frontal Wall `of the :cap 11, :as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1, the ends oi 'the "spring being rounded back for '-asmooth Contact with the vfrontal wall. The slide lis then-extended forwardly with a plunger -17 re- 'c'eiiving a 1hnob 18 at its outer end.

'The -nature ofthe spring 16 is such as to maintain the slide in the rearmost position indicated by full lines. The knob l18 is drawn forwardly vwlfren the delivery of -a cigarette is 'desired to move th'e slide to vthe positionindicated by dotted lines 'in Fig. 1. Y

'The slide .15 is vbuilt up with a pair of laterally spaced intermediate walls A19 whose upper edges are '-inclinedfforward-ly to rneet Ithe top ofthe Wall I1513. 'The vWalls l19 are 'extended laterally with bearings 19a alongside of which are disposed arcuately shaped members 20,'these being perforated for 'the loose passage of rivets 20a to hold the 'members 2O to 'the walls 1'9, and permit .such members to Ilbe swung in a vertical plane 'fbetween 'the Ifull lline and the 'dotted line positions indicated in `2. The rear :portions off of the machine.

the members are also cut with oblique slots 2011 to freely receive a rod 2l extending crosswise between and secured to the walls 11a. The relation of the members 20 `to the rod 21 is such that when the members are carried forward by the assembly of the walls 19, the slots 20h will function as cams to swing the members 20 from the low full line position to the higher dotted line position.

The drawing indicates the machine in the inactive position, and shows by means of a group of circles such cigarettes as are in the bottom Thus, the lowermost cigarette is indicated at A, the one next above by B, the next behind by C, and so on. It will be apparent that a pull on the knob 18 to draw the slide 15 in forward direction will carry the cigarette A,

` which is at present resting upon the ribs 10b,

to a position where it will fall off the same into the chute 10c. The movement of the other cigarettes in the zone of delivery is very important as related to the movement of the slide and its associated parts in respect to the stock of cigarettes in the carton 14.,

It is obvious that when the machine is at rest, the greater portion of the load in the carton 14 is borne by the internal walls 19 of the slide, and it follows that the inclined tops of these walls are intended to induce a forward movement ofthe lowermost cigarettes in the carton as soon as an opportunity to permit such a movement occurs. Thus, as the slide moves through its forward stroke, it meets and lifts the cigarette B somewhat, the latter resting against the wall section 11d and under an inward ledge 11g formed therefrom. Thus, the cigarettev B is held under the ledge and receives no pressure from above. The cigarette C is also lifted by thek incline and progress of the walls 19, operating to push the cigarette D in an upward and forward direction. Ordinarily, the next described action ywould be very difficult and attended by jamming because of the comparatively heavy load of cigarettes from above. However, during the forward movement of the slide, the arcuate members 20 have progressed and swung upwardly whereby to act in scoop-like fashion to lift the load, starting with cigarettes F, G, H, etc. This action removes the pressure of the load from cigarettes C and D permitting the free rolling and readjustment thereof. At the same time, the lifting action imposes enough kforward pressure upon the cigarette E and others immediately above it to keep them above the ledge 11g and `away from the feeding zone. It is therefore seen that cigarettes C and D which would be otherwise subjected to crushing and packing influences either by the load or by the operation of `,any mechanism thereagainst are entirely relieved when ,the load is lifted by the lifting'members 20. Obviously, when the slide is permitted to recede,

.cigarette B falls into the space formerly occuand it is seen that by the mechanism and operation described, I have eliminated the packing and crowding action which would otherwise occur in the lower1r portion of the V tothe detriment of properrsingle delivery, so that I am enabled to feed the cigarettes singly without packing, deterring or deforming influences on the part of the load and the mechanism. In addition, the lifting members 20 act as agitators for the superimposed load of cigarettes each time a delivery or return action occurs. Thus, what cigarettes may have a tendency to pack or crowd in the vicinity of the delivery mechanism are loosened by the action of the agitators.

In order that the cigarettes may be kept in proper condition, I have provided a receptacle 22 in the front wall formation of the cap 11, placing a wet sponge 23 in the latter and making an opening 24 in the wall section 11d for the passage of the moisture into the cigarette compartment. The container 13 is made with an opening 13a opposite the receptacle 22 for the insertion or removal of the sponge 23.

In conclusion, it is evident that I have provided a structure which is'of few major parts-mostly of cast metal-making for the economical construction of the machine. Further, there are no delicate parts to get out of order or require adjustment, and the mechanism may be depended upon to operate for long periods without appreciable attention. v

I-claim2- 1. Acigarette vending machine, comprising a base, a receptacle above the same and adapted to receive a load of horizontally positioned cigarettes, a slide movable in forward direction with the effect of discharging the lowermost cigarette in the frontal portion of Athe receptacle, scooplike members actuated upwardly by the forward movement of the slide to boost the load above the zone of discharge,whereby to relieve the cigarettes below said load from the weight thereof, and vertical supports upstanding from the slides, said members being pivotally attached alongside said supports.

2. The structure of claim 1, said members being slotted obliquely from their rear edges, and a rod supported by the receptacle and passing transversely through the slots in the members,k the angleof the slot being such as to impart a swing-` ioo 'rio

ing movement in the upward direction as `the V slide moves forwardly. v v

3. A vending machine comprising a receptacle for horizontally-stackedcigarettes, a support in the bottom of the receptacle, a slide operable over the support and perforated to admit a cigarette upon the latter, the forwardmovement of: the slide dislodging the cigarette from thesupport for discharge, means leading next succeeding cigarettes in the stack in the directionl of the one disposed for discharge, and elements co-acting at the time of discharge to isolate such succeeding cigarettes from `the remainder in the stack, said elements comprising a'projection inwardly from the front wall of the receptacle and lifting members opposite the projection, the lifting members being carried `by the slide, and a connection actuating the lifting members on the forward movement of the slide.

4. The structure of claim 3, said lifting mem# bers being vpivoted to the slideand a. connection actuating the lifting members on the forward movement'of the slide.

5. A vending machine comprising a receptacle rfor horizontally-stacked cigarettes, a support in the bottom of the receptacle, a slide operable over the support and perforatedV to admit a cigarette upon the latter, Athe forward movement ofthe slide dislodging-the cigarette from the support for discharge, means leading next succeeding cigarettes inA thevstackY in the direction ofthe one disposed for discharge, and elements coacting at the time of discharge to isolate such succeeding cigarettes from the remainder in the stack, said elements comprising a'projection inwardly from the front Wall of the receptacle and lifting members opposite the projection, the lifting members extending forwardly and pivoted with their rear portions to the slide, and a connection actuating the lifting members on the forward movement of the slide.

6. A vending machine comprising a receptacle for horizontally-stacked cigarettes, a support in the bottom of the receptacle, a slide operable over the support and perforated to admit a cigarette upon the latter, the forward movement of the slide dislodging the cigarette from the support for discharge, means leading next succeeding cigarettes in the stack in the direction of the one disposed for discharge, and elements coacting at the time of discharge to isolate such succeeding cigarettes from the remainder in the stack, said elements comprising a projection inwardly from the front wall of the receptacle and lifting members opposite the projection, the lifting members being' pivotecl to the slide, extensions of the members beyond the pivots, a stationary element, and a connection between the extensions and the stationary element operative toy actuate the lifting members on the forward movement ofthe slide.

7. A cigarette vending machine, comprising a base, a receptacle above the same and adapted to receive a load of horizontally positioned cigarettes, a slide movable in forward direction with the effect of discharging the lowermost cigarette in the frontal portion of the receptacle, scooplike members actuated upwardly by the forward movement of the slide to boost the load above the zone of discharge, whereby to relieve the cigarettes below said load from the weight thereof, and forwardly-inclined supports upstanding from the slide to lead the lowermost cigarettes in forward direction toward the zone of discharge, said members being pivotally attached to the supports.

WILLIAM H. BLOCK. 

